Woman assaulted inside home during 'horrendous, thuggish' crime spree

Detectives are hunting for several African youths involved in a series of “abhorrent” home invasions and robberies in Melbourne’s western suburbs.

A woman was hit across the face and forced to sit in her front room as ten men ransacked her house, in one of four offences overnight.

“These are horrendous offences ... It’s thuggish behaviour by a group of young people who have no apparent care for the rights and well being of their fellow citizens,” Victorian Police Commander Russell Barrett told reporters today.

Commander Barrett said it was too early to determine whether the offences were linked, but it is likely given the proximity of the crimes committed.

Homes were broken into and victims assaulted during the spree. (9NEWS) ()Baseball bats were used in the rampage. (9NEWS) ()Commander Russell Barrett addressed the crime spree at a press conference this afternoon. (9NEWS) (9NEWS)

The violent spree began about 9.30pm when a 17-year-old boy was approached by a vehicle while walking in Taylors Hills.

A male got out of the vehicle demanding goods, while another struck the teenager to the back of the legs with a baseball bat.

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Two hours later, four males smashed a glass door at a home in Hillside and forced their way inside, striking a 59-year-old woman across the face.

She was forced to sit in her front room while ten other youths went through her house, stealing electrical items and car keys before they left.

Police believe the same group also punched and kicked a 16-year-old boy in Cairnlea, before stealing his mobile phone and demanding the passcode.

In a fourth incident, just after 12.30am, three males forced entry into a house in Delahey but fled with a stolen mobile phone after the occupants armed themselves.

Police detected a stolen car on St Albans Road about 1.30am that was believed to have been involved in the prior incidents.

After a short chase, the car was found crashed into a fence and all the occupants fled on foot.

Commander Barrett said the offenders have been described by victims as of African appearance and are behaving "(like) street gangs".

“I cannot, at this stage, point to an organised group of males involved in this incident. But certainly, across the breadth of what we’ve seen over the last few days, this is disappointing behaviour happening in our community,” he said.

The violent spree comes amid debate on Victoria’s “African youth gang problem” following a series of other incidents across Melbourne involving African teenagers.

“I wouldn’t go as far as saying it is an escalation, but it is certainly a serious incident,” Commander Barrett said.

"We're seeing offences across a range of types of offending - some of it is quite low level ... others, as these offences are, are incredibly serious, incredibly scary for those people involved."

African-Australian leaders have called for calm, calling on the majority of law-abiding young people to stand up rogue behaviour.

"The African Australian community as a whole is just as shocked as the broader Australian community in relation to these inexcusable incidents," a statement from Africa Media Australia, released yesterday, said.

"The issues that are leading some of our young people to offend are complex and they need to be addressed as such. There is no magic bullet to solving these issues overnight.

"We acknowledge the work being done by our police force on the ground and we want Victoria Police to know that the community will continue to work with them to address any offending behaviour."

On Tuesday, an African leader told the prime minister to “man up” after he hit out at the Andrews government for its handling of the issue.

“The prime minister needs to man up, support the state government, support the African community, don't target them just because of the political agenda you want to drive,” Richard Deng from the South Sudanese Community Association of Victoria said.

“From a Victorian community perspective, this is very concerning. It places pressure on the broader African community and I think that it's fortunate that a number of African community leaders have spoken out against some of the behaviours of young people in recent days,” Commander Barrett said today.

“Just about the entire population of the western suburbs are law-abiding people, from all backgrounds.

“But don't be mistaken. Victoria Police's view is that we will catch these offender and we will lock them up.”

Anyone with information is urged to contact Crime Stoppers on 1800 333 000.